Method of manufacturing explosive compounds.



ENE sans 'Arna:

1 FTCE.

WILLIAM C. vVAZDIDIEILL, 0F CLEVELAND, OHIO, ASSIGNOR TO HOYNES SAFETY ZPOWDER- COMPANY, or CLEVELAND, OHIO,

A CORPORATION OF DELAWARE.

METHOD or MANUFACTURING- EXPLOSIVE ooivrronnns.

-new and useful Improvements in Methods of lVIanufactUring Explosive Compounds, of which the following is a specification.

The invention set forth herein has reference to a new and original method of manufacturing explosives or explosive compounds, and the object of the invention is to produce an explosive or powder in spherical units or bodies of substantially spherical or rounded shape and of practically uniform size and density. To these end the in vention proceeds with certain steps and by the use of certain means which in themselves are simple and easily supplied and produce a built up unit as hereinafter described. Thus, as means'or a medium in which the process or method may be performed, 1 may mention an ordinary wash tub or a tub especially constructed for the purpose but substantially like a wash tub in the main, though of a. larger size, say three or four feet across and approximately sixteen inches deep and set at an inclination backward upon a central axis on which it is adapted'to be rotated and tilted. This forms something of a trough shaped run or race the angle of the tub between side and bottom in which all the Work is done,

and either hand or power may be employed to rotate the tub at the requisite rate of An apparatus ofithis type and particularly adapted for this purpose is disclosed and claimed in my copending application Serial No. 780,218, filed July 21, 1913. No other or further means than these are required except such as are used to supply the explo sive ingredients to the tub. These begin. with what are properly thenucl'ei of the powder units, a number or quantity of grain or granules of the powder of a rela tively small size, say the size of small bird shot, although such grains or. granules are Specification of Letters Patent.

size. That is,

' Patented Aug. 4=, 1914 Application filed June 27, 1913. Serial No. 776,068.

not necessarily round or spherical to begin with. Of co'urse,a spherical shape would be preferable, but as a rule it is not practicable to get the nuclei in this shape, and I depend on their tendency to become round as the manufacture proceeds and particularly as an effect of their rolling after initial dusting and'moistening has begun. The nuclei must of course be firm enough to maintain their individuality and not break down her amalgamate as they develop or grow into complete units of the desired shape and size as the manufacture proceeds. Such nuclei may be specially made to begin with, but thereafter the manufacture of the pellets will supply them in abundance, as hereinafter fully de scribed. The requisite quantity or numberv of nuclei having been placed in the tub and ceeds progressively and constructively with the said nuclei as the base, pulveriform ex plosive being supplied as hereinafter indi-, cated. The proportion of the nuclei to the ultimate-or finished product may be about as one to sixteen for pellets of a popular each nucleus is supposed to build up or grow to about sixteen times its own original-size or, if the measure be by weight, one pound of nuclei will make say sixteen pounds of finished powder. Of course these figures are suggestive rather than arbitrary because the demands of the market will be the determining factor as to size and quality, and any size can be supplied. In fact it is one of the chief advantages of this method of manufacture that the product can be furnished inany useful size according to the work for which it is intended. I y

F or the present, and having placed the nuclei in the forming vessel or medium, referred to herein as a tub and having started the rotation of the tub, the next step is to .dust the nuclei which are substantially dry with dustlike explosive of the same composition and then spray or mist in moisten- '95 ing liquid as the manufacture in hand may,

. both are necessary to this proces of manuseparate and independent units.

.of the dust to the nuclei, and this or facture and follow each other alternate. The first step necessarily is the application necessary because the nuclei being sma blend if moistened first, and as the an a tening occurs the pellets absorb what tl need and naturally take on the dust and the rounded shape. A fairly fine hand sprayer will serve this purpose but, of course, for larger manufacture I employ sorayers under power pressure or head and clusters arranged in or about the face of the tub with mean to liberate the dust as hereinafter described.

An experienced eye will readily detect when the pellets are ready for either application and also the quantity of each required. The operation proceeds by rolling and tumbling the pellets continuously, and as the tub revolves they are of course carried up its sidea greater or less distance until they fall back by their own gravity and roll and tumble to the bottom. Of course they are not expected to become bunched or massed in this operation because they must not be moistened enough for this to occur and must maintain their individuality and build up as The total effectof this mode'of manufacture is to pack the pellets firmly as the growth proceeds, until at last, say about in twenty minutes, the nuclei shall have grown into pellets or spheres of the desired size. The tub is then emptied of its contents and another batch of nuclei placed therein and the work is re sumed as before, and so on repeatedly. A single tub of the average size can readily turn out five hundred pounds of the finished product in about ten hours, and a battery of several tubs can be supervised by a single person, assuming of course that the actual work is mostly done by power.

Incidental or auxiliary to. the foregoing manufacture of powder pellets or units in rounded or spherical shapeI have found narrow space where the pellets roll and turnble as well as directly thereon, and as these borders or zones also receive more or less moisture and dust alternately and build up a crust, it follows that by the time several batches of pellets have been turned out the side accumulations are such that they require removal. These accumulations are sufficiently compacted to make good granules when dried, and when broken up I am enabled to sift therefrom all the nuclei requircd for continued manufacture as well as to store away a considerable quantity of granulated powder for outside blasting purposes. The said by-product is therefore valuable in itselfanol has the important advantage of being self productive and involving no expense of manufacture. It follows that I thus am enabled to maize both spherical and granulated powder at the same time and in the same vessel and each as a separate and distinct article complete. in itself and practically ready for the market.

When the pellets have been removed from the machine they are of such firmness that they can be poured onto the driers, whence they go to a separator to be assorted in sizes. The entire operation need not exceed a few hours from the tub to the dried and assorted article ready for the cartridge, if artificial drying be employed. I

The pellets or spheres manufactured by this process are homogeneous and have the same quality and density in themselves from center to circumference and as compared one with the other. It is material in this manufacture that the nuclei when placed in the run way should at least be of such dryness as not to adhere one to the other, and hence I have found it nccessary'to first apply a suitable quantity of the powder dust and then administer a light spraying. The nuclei readily lay hold of the dust under these conditions and build up instead of falling down or blending, as they will if the operation be reversed. By powdi er dust I mean any one or more of the explosive constituents or ingredients mixed and reduced to a finely divided or dust state, and the finer the better for this purpose.

What I claim is:

1. The process of forming spherical explosive units or pellets which comprises keeping nuclei of explosive'material in tumbling motion with successive additions of pulverulent explosive material of the same nature and of a moistening liquid until spherical bodies form by accretion, the additions of pulveruleut explosive in each case being prior to the addition of said moistening fluid.

2. In the manufacture of substantially spherical explosive units or'pellets, the process which comprises tumbling substantially dry nuclei of explosive material in the presence of dust like explosive of the same In testimony whereof I aflix my signature 7 naturgarlding a small proportion of moisin presence of two Witnesses.

tening liquid and continuin the tumblin l and suceessively adding m re clustlike e; WWILIfIAM W ADDELL' plosive followed by moistening fluid until \Vitnesses:

said nuclei by accretion have formed sub- E. M. FISHER,

stantially spherical units of the size desired. H. T. FISHER. 

